bishop-ncnicholas.jpgOn Thursday, April 17 there will be a special 5 p.m. Mass celebrated at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in memory of Bishop Joseph A. McNicholas on the 25th anniversary of his death.

Appointed by Pope Paul VI, Bishop McNicholas was the sixth bishop of the Springfield diocese and served from Sept. 3, 1975 until his unexpected death on April 17, 1983. He was just 60 years old when he died of a massive coronary thrombosis.

Because of his untimely demise, Bishop McNicholas' less than nine-year tenure was the shortest of any of the bishops in this diocese. A prolific homilist who often spoke for 45 minutes during confirmations, his motto was "I come to serve." He is remembered as a civil rights advocate who worked for desegregation in schools.

Bishop McNicholas was active in the National Conference of Catholic Bishops and was at one point nominated for the presidency of the NCCB.

He was born in St. Louis and was a lifelong fan of the St. Louis Cardinals. He sometimes wrote about the baseball team in his column in Time and Eternity, which was the name of the diocesan newspaper at that time.   

"I am sure a lot of people remember Bishop McNicholas," said Father Peter Harman, pastor of Cathedral Parish. "We thought having this anniversary Mass would be a good way to honor him."

The Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception is located at 800 S. Sixth St. at Lawrence Avenue in Springfield.

(Some of the historic data for this article came from Come to the Water, A Sesquicentennial History written by Sister Susan Karina Dickey, OP.)